Racial Healing and Justice Fund – 1st Cycle Grantees
Congratulations to all of the 1st Cycle Racial Healing + Justice Fund Grantees!
The inaugural grant cycle of the RH+JF distributions total more than $160,000 of the Fund’s $1.69 million, awarding grants to 13 different projects that are each centered around Healing the Core and Changing the Conditions of racial trauma and injustice in the St. Louis region’s Black and Brown communities.
Please join us in celebrating and supporting each of our grantees and their initiatives!
Scroll down to learn more about the RH+JF grantees, and how their projects will shape the future of Racial Equity for Black and Brown communities in the St. Louis area.
Meet the Grantees
- “You Lucky You Gotta Mama” by Brittany Ferrell*
- Brownprenuers
- Communities First
- Dream Builders 4 Equity
- Good Journey
- NLJ Counseling and Coaching Services*
- Peace Weaving Wholeness
- Rustic Roots Sanctuary
- Sistakeeper Empowerment Center
- The Collective STL
- The Justice Fleet*
- The Nehemiah Program
- YourWords STL
"You Lucky You Gotta Mama" by Brittany Ferrell*
About the Project:
The “You Lucky You Gotta Mama” documentary film project shows the daily life of Black women, non-binary, and trans people through various stages of their pregnancy, exploring the intimacy and humanity of pregnancy as a natural condition and birthright.
Photo via: Jamaa Birth Village
*With Fiscal Sponsorship from Jamaa Birth Village
Brownprenuers
Providing entrepreneurial training workshops for African-American high school and college students.
About the Project:
The Teen Summit hosts students from throughout St.Louis region for a free in-depth, three-day, eight-hour training workshop. Each day is centered around a different fundamental business principle; breakfast and lunch are also included.
All sessions are taught by an experienced entrepreneur, industry professional, or educator.
Photo via: heylagostechie on Unsplash
Communities First
Planning, developing, promoting and providing social, cultural, and academic programming and economic investment.
About the Project:
The “new” movement toward racial healing, justice, and equity has left out key members of the Black and Brown community, including the elderly and disabled, ex-offenders, and those who cannot participate due to family or job obligations–all of whom have unique contributions to the movement. United Voices will provide opportunities for these groups to have a voice in the movement, and will ensure that new leaders in the cause will have the foundational tools they need to develop and push an agenda toward change, and will interface with existing momentum toward equity and justice.
https://communitiesfirststl.com
Photo via: Communities First
Dream Builders 4 Equity
Providing at-risk youth with access to a diverse and broad set of assets through mentorship, entrepreneurship, scholarship, and leadership training.
About the Project:
The Dream Builders Academy Program will support two cohorts of high school students with the development of leadership, financial, construction, real estate development, book publishing, and community development skills.
https://www.dreambuilders4equity.org
Photo via: Dream Builders 4 Equity
Good Journey
Developing communities and young leaders by promoting cultural understanding, and providing skills, experiences, opportunities, and encouragement for success.
About the Project:
The development of the Black Youth Corps – Our Community Our World project will address the issue of racism experienced by Black youth in youth spaces,
and the lack of a Black empowered youth movement to consciously and systematically address the racism they experience in those spaces.
Black youth will be trained to eradicate internalized racial inferiority and use this as the foundation, coupled with organizing
training, for their Black youth led movement to eradicate racism in spaces that should be safe, uplifting and motivating for all.
Photo via: Good Journey
NLJ Counseling and Coaching Services*
Created as a vessel to aid individuals whom have become troubled with day-to-day stress, societal challenges and undiagnosed mental health struggles.
About the Project:
This project will offer Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), Floatation therapy, and other wellness activities and tools for helping brown and black residents of the St. Louis metropolitan area manage and treat the effects of racial stress and trauma.
Photo via: NLJ Counseling and Coaching Services
*With Fiscal Sponsorship from Kabila Heart
Peace Weaving Wholeness
Helping women and men, ages 60 and older, to heal and remain whole.
About the Project:
“The Sankofa Village Griot Project: Our Voices, Our Wisdom“ will impact healing across generations through story sharing. By soliciting, curating, and amplifying truth narratives on experiences with racial oppression, the project will activate its audiences for systemic change.
https://www.peaceweavingwholeness.org
Photo via: Peace Weaving Wholeness
Rustic Roots Sanctuary
A sustainable farm in Spanish Lake with an organic community garden growing organic, local, whole foods.
About the Project:
The development of Rustic Roots’ Farmer’s Market, Senior Outreach, and STEM Summer Camp projects will each help to heal racial inequity and food access issues by bringing awareness to health inequities, collaborating with other food access organizations, and providing fresh produce to the Spanish Lake area.
http://rusticrootssanctuary.org
Photo via: Rustic Roots Sanctuary
Sistakeeper Empowerment Center
Empowering Girls and Women through school based/community based mentoring wellness circles, online connection platforms for girls yearly summits, and volunteer opportunities.
About the Project:
The IDM Mobile Wellness initiative will provide mobile mental health services and support to women and girls who have experienced trauma. Addressing logistical challenges such as transportation and childcare, the initiative will deliver these services to the communities where the underserved black and brown populations reside.
Photo via: St. Louis Public Radio
The Collective STL
Intentionally creating a healthy and safe experience catered to Black people by offering compassionate wisdom that helps heal the mind, body, and spirit through techniques of yoga, mindfulness, and culturally relevant self-care strategies.
About the Project:
Yoga for the People is a donation-based class open to all people and all levels. Classes are designed to be fun, engaging, and
challenging, yet accessible to all levels. Teachers utilize fluid transitions from pose to pose, seamlessly linking body, breath, and movement.
https://www.thecollectivestl.org
Photo via: The Collective STL
The Justice Fleet*
A mobile, social justice, pop-up museum that fosters communal healing through art, dialogue, and play. The Justice Fleet is committed to expanding safe access to the arts, healing, and green space through their four interactive exhibits.
About the project:
The Justice Fleet Grief Garden is a safe, public, green space that fosters healing for people experiencing systemic injustice and the earth via horticulture therapy and conservation.
Photo via: Humans of St. Louis
*With Fiscal Sponsorship from Saint Louis University
The Nehemiah Program
Developing affordable, program-enriched housing for low-to-moderate income families, people with special needs, or those who lack the skills, supports, or economic resources to access quality, safe housing on their own.
About the project:
The Greater House Sober Living Program will enhance and expand The Nehemiah Program’s capacity to serve women who presently do not qualify for existing leveraged funding opportunities, and to extend their stays for longer periods of time as finding permanent housing becomes more difficult due to the many challenges that the COVID-19 has presented.
https://www.nehemiahprogramus.com
Photo via: The Nehemiah Program
YourWords STL
Providing one-on-one tutoring and creative writing workshops for underserved students.
About the project:
Crossing Delmar is a collaborative project that fosters individual and relational healing by guiding the development of racial and emotional literacy among elementary and middle school students from schools located on opposite sides of the Delmar Divide. Through engaging team-building activities, reflection of one’s identity through writing poetry, instruction of mindfulness and yoga practices, and courageous conversations that address race and racism, the program works toward the cultivation of empathy for oneself and others.
Photo via: YourWords STL
